Trump Retweets Supporter’s Message Calling for Democrat-Led Cities to Be Abandoned: ‘Let Them Rot’

Justin Sullivan, Getty Images

Sunday afternoon, President Donald Trump retweeted a tweet posted by a supporter that called for Democrat-led cities to be abandoned and left to rot.

The original tweet was posted by Brandon Straka, a pro-Trump activist who made headlines in June for getting banned from American Airlines for refusing to wear a face mask. Straka’s tweet shared a video clip purporting to show protesters in New York City’s Times Square.

“Leave Democrat cities,” wrote Straka. “Let them rot. The media and @TheDemocrats have activated this mental illness and it’s going to get more and more people hurt and killed.”

Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot. The media and @TheDemocrats have activated this mental illness and it’s going to get more and more people hurt and killed. #WalkAway from the radical left. And do it quickly. https://t.co/BIAZliK1Tf

— Brandon Straka (@BrandonStraka) August 16, 2020

Screenshot of the tweet showing the retweet by Trump:

Screenshot via Twitter on August 16, 2020.

CNN’s Jake Tapper was among those who criticized Trump for sharing a tweet with this message.

I couldn’t believe it when I first saw it, but I checked, and yes, the president of the United States actually RTed this message to “Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot.” pic.twitter.com/1b6yZXhQ2p

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) August 16, 2020

Have we lost our capacity to be shocked? The President of the United States — who is supposed to lead an entire nation — just retweeted someone urging “Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot.”

— Karen Tumulty (@ktumulty) August 16, 2020

“Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot.”

This is from the commander-in-chief, the President of the United States, further confirming that we are presently in a cold civil war. pic.twitter.com/1BVpYfA51O

— Brandon Friedman (@BFriedmanDC) August 16, 2020

How do @GOP voters living in Democrat-controlled cities feel about the strategy your leader in D.C. just endorsed: “Leave Democrat cities. Let them rot.” Maybe you should vote #BidenHarris2020 this time round

— Keith Devlin (@profkeithdevlin) August 16, 2020

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